Gambling by mobile phone has rocketed, with the number of betting pages downloaded expected to approach three million this year, a rise of 367 per cent on 2004.

The conclusion of research by Mintel has sparked concern that the almost unlimited access to gambling provided by mobile phones will fuel a rise in addiction.

Mintelís research found Britain's mobile phone junkies are set to blow a staggering £740m on phone downloads this year alone, some eighteen times the £40m spent in 2002.

Ring-tones for phones account for a third of downloads. Arcade-style games are also popular (26 per cent), as are screensavers and wallpaper (13 per cent), and music (8 per cent). But the biggest growth area has been in gambling, which now accounts for 9 per cent of all downloads.